The present invention relates to the technical field of an image processing apparatus for carrying out image processing of image data read out by an image reading apparatus. More specifically, it relates to an image processing apparatus capable of simultaneously supplying image data to an image recording apparatus and to a recording medium such as a magneto optical recording disk (MO).
At present, an image recorded on a photographic film such as a negative film, a reversal film and the like (hereinafter referred to as a film) is printed on a photosensitive material such as a photographic paper and the like, mainly by a technique called xe2x80x9cdirect exposurexe2x80x9d. In direct exposure, the photosensitive material is subjected to areal exposure by means of projected light carrying the information of the image on the film.
Recently, printers making use of digital exposure, that is, digital photoprinters have been developed and commercialized. In the digital photoprinters, after image information recorded on a film is photoelectrically read out, the read-out image information is subjected to various kinds of image processing to provide digital image data (digital image signals) to be recorded. Then, a photosensitive material is scanned and exposed with recording light modulated in accordance with the image data. Thereby, an image (a latent image) is recorded and the recorded image is developed, and the photographic print is obtained.
In the digital photoprinters, since a film is photoelectrically read out and exposure conditions are determined based on a color/density correction and the like carried out by signal processing, a period of time during which a unit image is exposed is short and the exposure time is constant in accordance with the image size. As a result, printing can be promptly carried out as compared with the conventional areal exposure.
Editing such as combining of a plurality of images, division of an image and the like, and image processing such as color/density adjustment and the like, can be carried out freely, and finished prints which were edited and processed freely in accordance with their use can be output. In prints made by the conventional direct exposure, images recorded on a film or the like cannot be perfectly reproduced in some points such as resolution, color/density reproducibility and the like. With the digital photoprinters however, can be output prints which realized nearly perfect reproduction of the images (image density information) recorded on a film or the like.
Basically, the digital photoprinters as described above comprise an image reading apparatus (scanner), an image processing apparatus (image processor), and an image recording apparatus (printer).
In the scanner, reading light produced by a light source impinges upon a film to thereby obtain projected light which carries an image recorded on the film. The image carried by the projected light is formed in an image sensor such as a CCD (charge coupled device) sensor or the like through an imaging lens, and is read out by subjecting the projected light to photoelectrical conversion in the image sensor. Then, after the thus read image is subjected to various kinds of image processing as required, the image is input to the image processing apparatus as image data (image information) on a film.
The image processing apparatus sets image processing conditions in accordance with the image data input from the scanner and displays the image on a display. After the operator carries out as required testing and adjustment of the image processing conditions, the image data are subjected to a determined image processing and input to the printer as output image data (exposure conditions) for image recording.
In the printer, in the case of an apparatus making use of a light beam scanning exposure for example, light beams are modulated in accordance with the image data input from the image processing apparatus and deflected in a main scanning direction. Also, a photosensitive material (photographic paper) is conveyed in an auxiliary scanning direction which is normal to the main scanning direction. In this manner, the photosensitive material is two-dimensionally exposed to (or printed by) the light beams carrying an image to thereby form a latent image. The photosensitive material is then subjected to development processing in accordance with the nature of the photosensitive material. A finished print (photograph) reproducing the image recorded on a film is thereby obtained.
In the digital photoprinter, image data to be recorded by the printer are produced, and are used for image recording on a finished print, as described above. It is also possible as required to output the image data on the finished print to a recording medium such as a MO, a floppy disk and the like, and store therein, instead of outputting the finished print.
Any number of finished prints of a desired image can be output by storing image data in such a recording medium, even if there is no negative film or the like. The operation can be promptly and simply carried out, since the exposure conditions are predetermined.
The field of application where the image on a finished print is output to a recording medium as image data, is deemed to be enlarged together with the recent spread of digital cameras and personal computers.
In the conventional digital photoprinters however, it is only one of finished prints and image data that can be output, and a system capable of outputting the image data to both a printer and a recording medium at the same time has not so far realized.
An object of the present invention is to provide an image processing apparatus which receives image data read out by a scanner, subjects the received image data to a predetermined image processing, and outputs the image data in accordance with recording (the image data to be recorded), wherein said image processing apparatus is capable of outputting simultaneously the produced image data to both a printer and a recording medium. That is, it is capable of carrying out printing of a finished print and outputting of the image data to the recording medium in parallel, to thereby provide users with both the finished print and the recording medium having the image data stored therein.
In order to achieve the above object, the invention provides an image processing apparatus which subjects image data read out by an image reading apparatus to a predetermined image processing, and outputs the thus obtained image data to an image recording apparatus as image data in accordance with recording, said image processing apparatus comprising:
an image processing unit for subjecting the image data read out by said image reading apparatus to the predetermined image preocessing;
a condition setting unit for setting image processing conditions in said image processing unit;
an image buffer for storing the image data processed in said image processing unit; and
a recording device which is connected to said image buffer.
It is preferred that the image recording apparatus outputs a finished print on which the image data in accordance with recording is recorded and that the recording device outputs a recording medium which stores the image data recorded on the finished print.
The image processing unit preferably carries out the predetermined image processing by the pipeline processing.
It is also preferred that the condition setting unit sets the image processing conditions using prescanned image data photoelectrically read out at a low resolution by the image reading apparatus.
It is further preferred that the image processing unit carries out the predetermined image processing to fine-scanned image data photoelectrically read out at a high resolution after the image processing conditions has been set by the condition setting unit, and that the image processing unit comprises a color/gradation processing unit for correcting a color and a gradation of an image, a scale convention processing unit for enlarging and reducing the image, a dynamic range processing unit for compressing and expanding a dynamic range of the image data of one frame of the image and a sharpness processing unit for enhancing a sharpness of the image, and carries out a color/gradation processing, a scale conversion processing, a dynamic range processing and a sharpness processing by the pipe processing.
It is still further preferred that the image processing apparatus further comprises an compression/expansion unit for compressing the image data to be stored by the recording device and expanding the compressed image data read out by the recording device, and which is provided between the image buffer and the recording device.
These and other objects of the present application will become more readily apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.